Global Health: Progress and Challenges: March 2018

School lunch programs like this one in China can combat malnutrition, but many poor nations can’t afford such programs.

The prosperity and security of nations depends on several factors – wealth, productivity, infrastructure, education, military power . . . and the health of each nation’s population.

The Foreign Policy Association’s final “Great Decisions 2018” discussion at the Arizona Senior Academy focuses on Global Health: Progress and Challenges. It will begin at 2:30 p.m. Thursday (March 29) in the Academy’s Great Room.

But global health is distinctly different from most geopolitical issues. The geopolitics of nation states – America, Russia, China, Turkey, North Korea, and others – rely significantly on “hard power” (military and economic force) to succeed.

Global health relies on soft power – the strength and ability to attract and persuade. In addition, global health is often beyond the control of individual states and requires financial and infrastructural resources beyond the capabilities of less wealthy nations.

Coordinated international efforts have achieved noteworthy outcomes. In the past quarter century life expectancy world-wide has increased from 65 to 72, deaths in early childhood have dropped by more than 50%. Since 2000, deaths from HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa have decreased from 1.9 million to 1 million—still high, but a major reduction. The death rate from malaria has dropped 60%. Polio, afflicting 350,000 children worldwide in 1988, has dropped to only 11 cases in 2016! Smallpox has been eradicated.

Public-private collaborations have been key, such as for dealing with the HIV/AIDS crisis, conquering smallpox, and mounting the Gates-supported Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization.

But while progress has been made in controlling communicable diseases, non-communicable diseases – cancer, heart disease, diabetes – are on the rise, further complicating the picture going forward.

Written by Ted Hullar, Academy Village Volunteer

More Info on attending an event

Academy Village is an active-adult community located off Old Spanish Trail six miles southeast of Saguaro National Park East. Its residents support the Arizona Senior Academy, a non-profit charitable organization whose mission includes offering free concerts and lectures to the public.

These events are held in the Great Room of The ASA Building adjacent to the Academy Village Community Center. Due to the popularity of cultural events, non-residents who wish to ensure priority seating are advised to make reservations by email at info@arizonasenioracademy.org or by phone at (520) 647-0980. To learn more about the Academy, go to www.asa-tucson.org.

Parking for visitors is in the lot behind the Community Center. All parking spaces in front of the Academy building are reserved.

Testimonials

Designed to bring together individuals with intellectual curiosity in a stimulating environment, [Academy Village] is a successful model for creative retirement that is being used by several other American universities.

Performing at the Arizona Senior Academy, in their gorgeous location on the eastern side of Saguaro National Park East, is a high point of the year for both my students and myself. The audience and administration are very welcoming to UA students and faculty, and the subsequent question-and-answer period is always informative.

I’ve given public lectures around the world, and found the questions asked here at the ASA to be some of the most thoughtful and perceptive that I’ve ever gotten!

We have always enjoyed performing at the Academy. A gorgeous spot, a wonderful piano, a fantastic audience and exceptional hosts who make their guests feel really special. Does not get better than that!

ASA is a very unique venue that offers a very intimate feel that I truly appreciate as a musician. … A Hidden Gem in the Desert.

The first time I performed at the Arizona Senior Academy I offered two options to the audience for an encore: Chopin or Schoenberg. Who could imagine an audience whose resounding answer would be ‘SCHOENBERG!’ Clearly, this response demonstrates unusually open, perceptive ears!

The Arizona Senior Academy provides a comfortable space with great acoustics … This ensures a great time for both audience and performer. It is a fantastic venue in a beautiful desert setting. The icing on the cake is the audience — engaged and eager to hear what the performer has to offer.

Making presentations at the Arizona Senior Academy is always a joy and a challenge, because I have to work a little harder to stay one step ahead of the very sharp audience. … And the lovely desert location helps keep us all stimulated.

A treasure on the eastside.

Playing at the Academy offers the performer the unique experience of an audience that is simultaneously appreciative and stimulating. The questions that follow can lead to unusual and thought-provoking turns of conversation, both during the performance hour and at the congenial luncheon that so often follows. What a great place to play!

The opportunity to preview University of Arizona concerts in such a receptive venue, both audience and acoustic-wise, makes the Senior Academy a unique place for us performers. … It is always a great pleasure to perform/lecture at the Arizona Senior Academy.

I’ve given talks in venues across the country, and I always look forward to returning to Academy Village. The setting is superb and the venue comfortable—and a speaker couldn’t ask for a more responsive, more receptive audience.